Case for fracking 'has been made stronger by Vladimir Putin'

Case for fracking has been made stronger by Vladimir Putin’s Ukraine invasion as war has underlined our reliance on Russian fuel, says Kwasi Kwarteng

• Kwasi Kwarteng said while West depends on oil and gas it is vulnerable to Putin 
• Fracking was halted in the UK in 2019 following concern over earthquakes
• But following rising oil and gas prices, a number of Tory MPs called for a rethink
• Mr Kwarteng wrote to the British Geological Survey for report on latest science 
• Labour climate change spokesman Ed Miliband condemned the fracking review 

Vladimir Putin has made the case for fracking stronger, the Business Secretary said yesterday as he announced a review of the controversial process.

Kwasi Kwarteng said as long as the West is dependent on oil and gas it is vulnerable to Putin’s ‘malign influence’.

Fracking – shale gas extraction – was halted in the UK in 2019 following concerns over earthquakes, but following rising oil and gas prices and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine a number of Tory MPs called for a rethink, prompting a row.

Now Mr Kwarteng has written to the British Geological Survey asking for a report on the latest fracking science, including new techniques and improvements in geological modelling.

Kwasi Kwarteng said as long as the West is dependent on oil and gas it is vulnerable to Putin’s ‘malign influence’

He said the Government would be guided by the science on shale gas and lift the pause only if it was ‘safe, sustainable and of minimal disturbance’.

He emphasised that fracking ‘would take years of exploration and development… and would certainly have no effect on prices in the near term’, but said that in the light of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine it was ‘absolutely right that we explore all possible domestic energy sources’.

He told the Harvard Kennedy School: ‘For as long as we depend on oil and gas – wherever it is from – we are all vulnerable to Putin’s malign influence on global markets.’

It comes as the Government prepares to unveil its new energy security strategy tomorrow. 

It is expected to set out plans to boost new nuclear power capacity, solar and offshore wind.

Labour climate change spokesman Ed Miliband condemned the move to review fracking, saying: ‘The Government itself concluded that fracking is unsafe, and will not help our energy security or cut bills, and fracking is strongly opposed by local communities.’

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